Portrait of Agrippina the Younger

Agrippina the Younger (15-59 CE) was a powerful woman, the sister, wife, and mother to three different emperors. According to ancient authors, Agrippina’s brother Caligula sent her into exile for her involvement in a conspiracy. Agrippina is said to have poisoned Claudius (her uncle and husband) so that her son Nero might become emperor. She ruled in Nero’s name while he was young, but he eventually turned against her and ordered her murder. Agrippina reportedly wrote an autobiography, which has not survived. Her portraits thus provide the only clues to how she wished to be represented during her lifetime. Only the head of RISD’s portrait is ancient. The colored marble elements of her garments and statue base are eighteenth-century embellishments.

Agrippina (15–59 CE), the subject of this portrait, was related to four different Roman emperors: she was granddaughter to Augustus, sister to Caligula, mother to Nero, and niece and later wife to Claudius. It is therefore not surprising that many portraits of her survive. They invariably depict her with a broad forehead, a square jaw, large eyes, thin lips, and a sharp chin, all features shared by many members of e imperial family.

Ancient pieces were sometimes combined with other sculptural elements to create “new” composite sculptures. This ancient portrait head was inserted into a bust composed of different-colored marble in the 18th century.